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Vidal apologises for drink-driving charge

After having his driver's licence revoked for drink-driving, Arturo Vidal has apologised to his Chile coach and team-mates.

Published

17 June 2015

Chile midfielder Arturo Vidal has issued an apology and claims he has been left feeling "ashamed" after his involvement in a car crash while under the influence of alcohol.

The 28-year-old crashed his Ferrari when driving with his wife at around 23:00 local time in Santiago on Tuesday.

Vidal subsequently had his driver's licence revoked and was ordered to provide a signature at the Chilean consulate in Milan on a monthly basis, but Chile head coach Jorge Sampaoli confirmed Vidal would not be kicked out of the country's Copa America squad.

The Juventus midfielder has now moved to express his remorse for the incident.

"I just want to explain what happened," Vidal said at a news conference. "I went to the casino and I've drunk two spirits and then we had an accident.

"As all of you already know, I put the life of my wife and a lot of persons in risk. I am so sorry and just want to thank to all the people who supported me while I was with the police.

"I just want to apologise to my team-mates, manager, staff and all the country.

"It is not really easy to talk about that but I am very ashamed, so I just can say sorry. I feel the support of the people and show them on the pitch why they give this opportunity.

"I apologise to my wife, my team-mates, all the staff. I've failed them and I will try to give my best to be champions. I am sorry to the people who was involved in the accident. It was my fault. I just want apologise to everyone."

Chile, who are hosting the Copa, have taken four points from Group A thanks to a win over Ecuador and a draw with Mexico, with Vidal having scored in both matches.